TikTok has taken the social media space by storm. Since its global launch in 2017 it has more than tripled its users.
Currently, it is the 7th most used social media platform, but it has held the title of the most downloaded social media app for the past two years.
As of December 2020, TikTok has been downloaded 2.6 billion times. Its company ByteDance is now valued at $140 billion, overtaking Uber as the most profitable startup in the world.
At the time of writing, TikTok has reached 1 billion active global users and is projected to pass the 1.2 billion global mark. The passing of this threshold means it will be joining the realms of already established social media platforms.
The numbers tell us that this is the fastest-growing app and “the place to be” given its huge audience.
It has already passed Twitter, Snapchat, and Instagram. All this signifies that if you want to generate new leads, TikTok gives you a global platform to do so.
More importantly, TikTok allows you to create targeted ads that feel native to the platform, and users are more ready to engage with the content, so you are not getting a passive audience.
TikTok itself understands this. It already has several tools to attract businesses to spend on ads on the platform in a non-invasive way.
The recent addition of the Lead Generation Feature is the most innovative of all, and it has the potential to boost your lead generation campaigns significantly if you use it right.
What Is TikTok’s Lead Generation Feature?
TikTok describes its Lead Generation Feature as an advertising objective that allows your target customers to share their contact information with you without leaving the platform.
It uses an instant fort and several other features to make the process easier for your consumers while obtaining their most relevant information.
Moreover, you get customers who are interested in your product or brand. This improves the quality of your leads, allowing you to immediately act on them.
The feature starts with a traditional in-feed video ad. This time though, it has a call to action (CTA). Prospective clients who are interested can click on the CTA, which instantly loads up the form.
The form has an auto-populate feature. Basic information like their name, email, and gender, are collected.
The clients then fill out the other parts of the form, providing more information you can use. It can be customized to match your company’s brand or specific campaigns.
They can also schedule appointments with your business. After finishing this, they get to a “Thank You” page featuring a CTA that directs them to your website or an app download page. The information you capture from the leads is stored on TikTok. You can download it anytime or seamlessly integrate it into your CRM.
Using the feature is straightforward and consists of three stages. These include creating an ad campaign, creating an ad group, and creating an ad level.
Sign in to the advertising dashboard and head to the advertising objectives and lead generation to create an ad campaign. Pick the relevant campaign levels and click continue.
At the ad group level, you have to choose your ad placements, targeting, the relevant demographics, and then bidding and optimization preferences.
The ad level is where you create the ad itself. Your campaign should have a video, text, and an instant form. Follow these steps to create the ad and the instant form.
- Choose the name of your ad.
- Add a video to it, either uploading from the library or creating a new one.
- Enter the ad details like display name, profile image, CTA, and other relevant text.
- Move the Instant Form section.
- You have three options: Create to make a whole new form, copy to update or re-use an existing form, edit to make changes to a completed form.
- Once done, you can submit the completed ad and form.
What Drove Tiktok to Introduce This Feature?
TikTok constantly seeks to position itself as the next place for marketers amid competition from clone apps and traditional social media platforms. The main factor that differentiates its approach from others is its concern for users.
The Lead Generation Feature allows TikTok to provide value to businesses while first protecting the information of its users. It also makes the whole process convenient for all the parties involved.
The platform users are aware that their information is being collected, and they are in control of what information they share and with which brands or businesses.
Businesses then use the information to increase the effectiveness of their campaigns and the quality of leads they get.
Benefits of Tiktok Lead Generation to Businesses
This new Lead Generation Feature offers plenty of benefits to businesses. The clear and significant benefit is the quality of leads you get.
These are people who are genuinely interested in your product or brand, thus increasing your chances of converting them to clients. Your lead generation campaigns will no longer be a shot in the dark.
Let’s take a look at the many other benefits.
It Improves Efficiency
The whole aim of the feature is to improve the experience for businesses and users. Businesses get an easy ad set up that they can preview before launching, and there is no need for slow-loading external pages. Users get interactive ads and a fast form-filling process without having to leave the platform. The feature eliminates the aspects that make lead generation a problem for businesses.
It Offers Customization
Your business gets a chance to customize the ad content, the information you want in the instant form, the CTAs, and where they redirect to. It allows the feature to be used for all kinds of businesses and different lead campaign objectives.
Easy Information Processing
Getting the collected information is fast and you can immediately access it anytime. You have the option to download it directly from the ad manager or have it on the CRM.
With this efficiency, you can immediately nurture and score the leads, speeding up the conversion process.
Maximizes Mobile and Video Opportunities
The Lead Generation feature allows you to leverage all the advantages of TikTok.
An in-feed video precedes the form to an audience that gets on the platform ready to see videos. You are also using the most effective ad form in a platform where it is the native content.
You Can Improve on the Campaign
The data you get from the feature offers you a chance to build your audience. Beyond just turning them into conversions, it allows you to streamline future ads and create more precise audience personas for further ad targeting.
How to Incorporate the Tiktok Lead Generation into Your Digital Marketing Strategy
The technical process of incorporating TikTok Lead Generation is not difficult. It is the creative side that should be carefully considered.
There are several nuances you should follow, and a guesswork approach will only waste your investment. Here are some tips to make your marketing strategy more effective.
Use a Vertical Format For Your TikTok Ads
User experience is vital to excellent ad performance on TikTok, and because the platform is vertical by nature, your ads should fill in naturally. The ad specs follow a 9:16 aspect ratio, and anything outside of this will have more people skipping your ads.
Be Engaging From the Start
You do not have much time to build up your case, so your video ad should hook the audience from the get-go. That’s how TikTok works, and as an in-feed video, you are competing against hundreds of other content on the user’s feed.
The content and manner of delivery should hook the users immediately, else you run the risk of them scrolling away. Mention their potential problem and how your service or product provides the best solution for them.
Be Mindful of Video Length
TikTok’s short video format is part of the reason for its explosion and attraction. Viewers get to browse through a mountain of content in just a few minutes.
Your ad cannot interfere with that. While you have an allowance of about 60 seconds, it should be way shorter than that. Aim to cover everything between 10-25 seconds and let those who want to find out more follow the CTA.
That way, you improve engagement as users get to see your whole video. Short and sweet results in memorable content and a positive reception.
Take Part in TikTok Trends
TikTok is all about authenticity, and nothing reflects this better than the TikTok trends. There are many trends so you will not miss out on one that best matches your campaign objectives or brand goals. Using relatable content gets you closer to generating leads since it glues the users to the end and drives them through to your CTA.
Use Captions and Relevant Graphics
You can augment the impact of your videos by using captions and other graphics. Captions help because a considerable portion of the target audience will view the video with the audio turned off. Without the captions, they may easily scroll away.
Graphics highlight the relevant information and allow you to tell the story in a fast-paced manner. It is a tactic used by 4 out of 10 auction ads that have the highest VTR.
Leverage Native TikTok Storytelling Tools
On top of challenges, the platform has several other tools it uses, including music, effects, and dances. Use all of these tools in different aspects of your ads. While you may opt for a combination of these tools, the music should be in all your content to make your ads native and non-invasive. The result is an increase in engagement.
This tactic will also require you to be in sync with the latest trends and popular storytelling formats.
Add People to Your Ads
TikTok videos showcase people in their ads, and yours should as well. If it doesn’t, it would come off as impersonal. You want to talk with your audience, not just run another traditional ad on the platform. It also helps to work with an online content creators to improve your engagement.
Keep Your Brand Aesthetics
Just because you are doing a short video does not mean you should skimp on the quality. Producing high-quality videos maintains engagement. It also reflects positively on your brand.
In addition, keep your brand name, colors, and profile picture relevant and consistent across ads. Anything short of that would possibly confuse your prospective clients while also running the risk of looking like spam.
Collect Feedback
Where feedback is essential, keep the comment feature open. It allows you to understand the reception to your brand and the ad while also providing an opportunity for you to interact with the audience. You can answer their questions and direct them back to the CTA. It also boosts your engagement as other people get to see and know more about your brand.
Use Minimum Fields
The instant form allows for plenty of customization and details, but you should be careful not to overdo it with the details. The prospective lead should not feel like the process takes a lot of time or effort.
The information you are seeking should also be relevant to your ad and the objective. You can use the multiple question sections but try not to undo the advantage you get from the autofill feature.
Take Care of the Landing Page or App Download Site
The final CTA leads your prospective customers to a website or app download page. The process and experience should be smooth and top-notch. The pages should be optimized for mobile devices with the right graphic design and fast loading speeds. Otherwise, you will harm all your initial efforts.
Leverage TikTok Lead Generation Today
Social media has provided numerous opportunities for businesses to generate leads that boost their sales and push growth. In this regard, TikTok is the next frontier with plenty of potential and exciting new ways to conduct your lead campaigns.
The Lead Generation Feature is the latest example of how the platform caters to businesses. You have an efficient way to get high-quality leads on a platform that has the biggest untapped audience. It is also easy to use as you can style your ads to match the native user-generated content.
With the instant form attribute, collecting information is transparent, engaging, and smooth for both users and businesses. Taking advantage of this opportunity could be the step that takes your business to the next level. It is a sure way to see more returns on your investment.